Planter



kif 1,695,074

B. ZENDRON Dec. `11, 192s.

PLANTER Filed oct. s, 1927 4 Sheetg-Sheet 1 A:El Elrmn attorney B- ZENDRON PLANTE R Filed 0W 8. 1927 4 Shea gmmto Dec. 11, 1928. 1,695,074 l B. zENDRoN PLANTER Filed oct. 8, 1927 4. sheets-sheet 4 Patented Dec. 11,1928,

UNITED STATES BENJAMIN ZENDRON, F CRAIG, COLORADO.

.PATENT PLANTER.

Application led October' 8, 1327. Serial No. 224,848,

This invention is a planter designed more particularly for use in planting seed potatoes, and one object of the invention is to provide means whereby the seed will be successively Itaken from a hopper and carried to a seed tube and automatically discharged into the tube to be deposited in a furrow formed in the ground. Another object of the invention is to provide means whereby the seed stored in a hopper will be fed from the hop per without waste, and another object of the invention is to take up any excessive accumulation of seed and return the same to the feeding means, while a further object of the in-` vention is to provide a novel transfer mechanism for transferring the seed positively from the Vfeeding mechanism to the seed tube and furrow opener.' These stated objects, and other objects which will incidentally appear in theV course of the following description, are attained in such a machine as is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and the invention resides in certain novel features which will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings: i

Figure 1 is a plan view of a planter constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is aside elevation of the same;

Fig. -3 is a front elevation;

F ig. t is a longitudinal sect-ion on the line lof Fig. l;

F 5 is a detail section showing a clutch mechanism which may be employed;

Figz is a sectional elevation of an elevator which takes up any excess seed which may accumulate in the passage to the transfer wheel; i Y

Fig. 7 is a sectional elevation of the transfer wheel; d

Fig. 8 is a detail rear elevation of tion of the transfer wheel;

Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation of one form of mechanism for vactuating the seed-feeding platform; y

Fig. 10 is a view, partly in section and partly in plan, of the transfer wheel and the means whereby the seed is released from said wheel.

The main frame l consists of longitudinal' beams and cross bars secured together in any preferred manner and arranged to properly support the working part-s. vBetween the front and rear ends of the frame, an aXle 2 1s carried thereby and ground wheels 3 are rotatably mounted upon 4vthis axle. l [oun ted V a porto rot-ate with the lefthand wheel 3 is a sprocket wheel t and a sprocket chain` 5 Iis trained about the vsame and about a sprocket pinion 6 which is loosely n'iounted on a stub shaft Y carried by the sid-cof the hopperS and a bracket 9 secured to the hopper. rlhe hub of the sprocket, 6 is constructed in one side with a clutch face 10 and keyed to the shaft 7 is ya second clutch hub 1l which carries a gear wheel l2, the clutch hub of the sprocket wl eel being normally pressed into engagement with the clutch lhub 1l ,by a spring 13 coiled around th-e shaft? 'between the sprocket wheel and the bracket 9, as shown most clearly lin Fig. 5'. y Slidably mounted in a keeper 14 on .the sideof the hopper is a link 15 carrying afork 164 at its lower end which fork spans the shaft 7 and is tapered downwardly transversely ofy the machine so that when it is in an upper position it will permit engagemcnt'between the clutch members 10 and 11, but if it'be pushed downwardlyit will bear between washers or lwear plates mounted on the said clutch members so as to spread the same and thereby shift the cluteh'members apart against the action of the Vspring' 13 in an obvious manner. The link 15 is suspended from the rear en d of a hand lever .17 which is fulcrumed upon the side of the hopper and extends forwardly where itmay be' -easily reached by the operator, the lever being held to the side of the hopper by a. keeper 18, aswill be understood,

YVhcn the clutch membersv are engaged, mo-

tion will be imparted tol the sced-feeding` mechanism, will be presently explained,

and when the clutch members are disengaged,

the machine may be drawn over lield without operating to .plant The hopper is mounted upon the main frame in any convenient or approvedmanner and a draft pole or tongue 19is.secure`d tothe front end of the frame to permit 4the machine to `be drawn over a field by'a tractor or by draft animals A seat 2O is provided o n the top ofthe hopper and a foot board 21 is carriedbythe front end of the. frame to serve as a foot restandalso as a cover or guard for some of the operating mechanism. AAs shown most clearly in Fig. 1, thehopper is so formed a .road or as to provide a seed compartment 22 whichl carries the main supply of seed, a smaller seed compartment 23 at-the opposite side and an intermediate compartment whichv is Vrelatively narrow to accommodate the `transferwheel 25 yand thefblt ,QS'leading to the transfer wheel. Each hopper is construct-ed with a front wall 27 and a rear wall 28 which con verge downwardly, as clearly shown in Fig. 4, the lower edges of these walls beingI spaced apart to provide a discharge opening for the seed, and below the said opening a transverse bar 29 extends between the sides of the hopper to reinforce the structure and also form a guide for the pusher or movable platform whereby the seed is fed from the hopper. The pusher may be conveniently coiistr cted of sheet metal and is in the form of a substantially U-sliaped device set on its side, the upper member 30 of the pusher being shorter than the lower member 3l thereof, and said members being connected by a bridge portion 32 disposed at the rear of the supporting and guiding bar 29. The upper ii'iember 30 of the pusher fits slidably but closely between the edge of the rear wall 28 and the upper side of the member 29 and, consequently, serves as a closure for said space so that the seed cannot work out at the rear of the hopper and the lower member' 3l rests upon and slides on a platform 33 which spans the front portion of the hopper below the seed outlet of the saine and is of sufficient longitudinal extent so that at no time will the lower member 31 of the pusher clear the platform. The pusher reciprocates longitudinally of the machine and upon its forward stroke will push from the platform any seed which may be thereon and will deliver the same onto a conveyer-belt 34 which is disposed transversely of the machine between the fi'ont side of the hopper and the rear edge of the foot board 2l, as clearly shown in Figs. l and 4. This conveyer belt is supported by rollers 35 mounted adjacent the sides of the hopper and its upper run travels inwardly so that the seed deposited thereon will be delivered onto the central longitudinal conveyor belt 2G and by the latter delivered to the transfer wheel. A similar conveyor belt 36 is mounted in a similar position between the front end of the hopper 23 and the foot board 2l and this conveyer is so actuated that its upper run also travels inwardlv to deliver onto the intermediate longitudinally extending belt 26.

The hopper 23 is of similar construction to the hopper 22, but its inner side wall 37 is inclined inwardly and downwardly, as shown most clearly in Fir. l, so that this hopper is of less capacity than the main hopper 22. Operatingr iii the bottom of the hopper 23 is a pusher 3S which. is of the same construction as the first described pusher operating in the hopper 22 whereby the seed from the comp art ment 23 will be delivered onto the conveyer belt 36. At the inner side of the compartment 23 and the front end thereof, there is erected an elevator 39 in the form of an endless belt 40 having;` buckets or take-up bars 41 secured thereto, the casing 39 of the elevator having an opening 42 in its inner side at its lower end whereby any excessive accumulation of seed upon the conveyer 26 may pass to the elevator', itbeing noted upon reference to Fig. 6 that the belt 26 works closely between the side of the compartment 22 and the elevator casing. The belt 40 is trained around drums or rollers 42 at the top and bottom of the elevator casing and the shaft 43 of theV lower roller or drum 42 is extended forwardly to pass between the runs of the con veyer Se' and is equipped at its front end with beveled pinion 44 meshing; with a similar pinion 45 upon a. transverse shaft 4G mounted in suitable hearings upon the main frame, said shaft .having secured thereto between its ends a drum or pulley about which the convejrer belt 26 is trained so that the said belt will be driven directly from the shaft. The outer rol" rs or drums which carry the respective conv yers 34 and 36 are each carried by a` shaft which is journaled in the supportingr frame of the hopper and equipped at its front end with a beveled pinion 47 each meshing with a beveled pinion 48 upon the shaft 46 whereby the belts will be driven in theproper direct-ion. One end of the shaft 46 is projected beyond the left hand side of the hopper and is equipped with a sprocket gear 49 about which is trained a sprocket chain 50 which is also trained about a sprocket pinion 51 car ried on the left end of a transmission shaft 52. Said shaft 52 is journaled in and extends between the extreme sides of the hopper and at its left hand end carries a gear 53 which meshes with the gear 12 liereinbefore described. The transfer wheel 25 is secured di rectly to the shaft 52 to be rotated thereby and the pushers are also driven by this shaft. In Fig. 4,'1 have shown the pusher connected by a link 54 with a crank 55 of the shaft and this arrangement is highly efficient.

In lii 9, l have shown an arrangement for operating the pusher whereby the mechanism is not directly connected with the shaft 52 hut actuated by means of strikers 56 projeetingr radially from said shaft. These stri kers impinge upon a rockingl arm 57 which is hinged at its upper end to the rear side of the hopper, as indicated at 58, and has its lower end connected with the pusher by a couplingl bar or link 59. A retractile spring GO secured to the rocking arm and to al fixed part of the machine in advance of the arm serves to hold the saine to the strikers and to move it forward after it has been retracted by either striker.

The transfer wheel 25 is provided with ra dial pockets 6l which may be provided in any desired number, although ordinarily two pockets `disposed at diametrically opposite points of the wheel will be found suliicient. Secured upon the periphery of the wheel at the rear of each pocket in the direction of rotation ofthe wheel is a fork G2 which is adapted to take up seed and carry it around to the llo seed tube or spout 68 through which it will gavitate to a furrow formed by a furrow opener 64 secured to the lower end of the seed tube. Pivoted within each poclret 6l is a clearing or ejectingelement (55 consisting' of a bar or lever fulcru-med between its ends and having its outer end disposed to engage with the fork 62 at the rear of the same and its inner end equipped with a laterally projecting linger 66 whichextends through an arcuate slot 67 formed in the sideof the transfer wheel at the inner end ofthe pocket. The outer end of the ejector is provided with radially spaced lugs 68 on each side which are adapted to ride at the inner and outer sides of the fork 62 with the shank of the ejector fitting between the tines or points of the forli, as will be understood upon reference to Figs. 7 and 8. The ejecting bar is normally held with its outer end at the rear of Jhe forli, as shown in Fig. 7, by a spring '69 securedr in the pocket 6l and bearing against the ejector while he lateral finger 6G is adapted to be actuated at the proper point in the rotation of the transfer wheel to rock the ejector and cause its outer end to ride forwardly relative to the fork and remove the seed therefrom, the action being so timed that the removed seed will pass at once into the seed tube 'or spout 63. To effect the stated action of the ejector, a frame bar 70 which is disposed between the compartments of the hopper and at one side of the transfer posed that it will project into the path of the linger but it is constructed at spaced points with notches 7l which will permit the linger to pass, the forward notch being so located that the finger may pass through the same without causing relative movement of the ejector, but the rearmost notch is disposed in rear of the point of engagement of the finger with the frame bar so that the finger willv impinge against the bar, as shown in Fig. l0, and then as the rotation of the transfer wheel continues will be pushed back in the arcuate slot G7. The rotation of the wheel, however. carries he linger rearwardly so that eventually the ejector will assume a position substantially radial to the wheel and in this position the finger will engage and pass through the rear at once return it to its normal position at the rear of the foi-lr. The relative swinging movement imparted to the ejector by the engagement of the finger with the frame bar will cause the outer end of the ejector to swing forwardly relative to the fork 62 and, consequently, will remove the seed therefrom.

It will be noted that the seed spout 63 is inclined so that it may clear the lower portion of the transfer wheel and avoid frictional Contact therewith or interfering with the travel of the seed-carrying fork and the ejector, it being also noted that the front side of the seed tube is cut away so as to provide wheel is so dis-y slot- 7l, wl'iereupon the spring 69 will` ample clearance for these parts and insure the delivery of the seed into the tube.

The conveyerbelt 26 does not entend' rearwardly far enough to deliver the seed directly onto the forks of the transfer wheel but there isinterposed between said. convever and t e wheel a cup V72 which receives a seed from e conveyor and holds it until such time as rotation of the transfer wheel brings a fork into position. totalre up the seed. The bott m of the cup is constructed with a substantially cruciform .slot 73 which will permit thepassagc of afforlr and its cooperating ej ector but will prevent the seed dropping from tie cup. n

The furrow opener 64 and the seed tube 63 are carried by the rear end of a beam 74 which is sol arranged and shaped as to pass over the aide 2 to the front end of the frame where it is pivoted in alinement with the draft tongue. ,A rock shaft 7 5 is mounted transversely inthe frame near the front end thereof and passes below the beam 74, being equipped with a cranlr or lifting arm 7 G which is adapted yto engage under the beam and support the same so that the furrow opener will penetrate the soil to the ldesired depth. Upon the right hand Vend of this shaft is secured a hand lever 7 7 which works in a keeper 7 8 secured on the side of the hopper and is equipped with a latch cooperating with the usual holding segment 7 9 whereby to lock the shaft in any position in which it may be set. By properly setting the lever, the beam 74 will be raised or lowered and the furrow opener thus adjusted. Covering disks are mounted at the rear end of the frame in any convenient manner so as to run behind the furrow opener and turn the loose soil over onto the deposited seed. Y

Having thus described vthe invention, I claim:

l. ln a planter, the-combination of a seed tube arranged to deliver' seed to the ground, a j transfer wheel in advance of the seed tube and having' a substantially v1adial chamber and an arcuate slotin its side at the inner end of the chamber, means fordelivering seed to the transfer wheel, a forli fiXe'd on the periphery o f the wheel adjacent said chamber to take up the delivered seed,'an ejector element pivotally mounted within the radial llO chamber of the wheel and having its youter y end constructed to rest at the rear of the fork and its inner end provided with a lateral finger projecting through the arcuate slot in the side of the wheel, and a stationary bar arranged at the sideiof the wheel and projectingl into the path of said nger' whereby to rock the ejector element and discharge the seed into the seed tube, said bar being provided with a notch to permit passage of the linger afterk th-e seed is ejected. 2. In a planter, the combination of a hopper having a seed outlet in its bottom, a

stationary platform arranged below the hopper in advance ofthe seed outlet, a pusher reciprocating in a rectilinear path through the bottom of the hopper at said outlet and over the platform, seed-depositing mechanism at the rear of the hopper, and means for conveying seed from the platform to the seeddroppingl mechanism.

3. In a planter, the combination of a hopper having a seed outlet in its bottonna transverse guide element immediately below the said outlet, a platform below the outlet and in advance of the same, and a pusher mounted to reciprocate below the said outlet and having an upper member extending; over the guide element and a lower member fixed to the upper member at the rear of the guide element extendingr under the guide element and resting on the platform.

4. In a planter, the combination oft a hopper, a seed-depositing mechanism at the rear and at one side of the hopper, means for feeding seed forwardly Ytrom the hopper, and conveyers arranged in advance and at the side of the hopper for transferring seed from said feeding means to the seed-depositinpA mechanism.

5. In a planter, the combination of hoppers, a seed-depositing mechanism arranged at the rear and between the hoppers, means for Yfeedinga seed from the hoppers to the front thereof, conveyors carrying the seed from the iront oit the` hoppers inwardly to a point alined with the seed-depositing mechanism, and a conveyer receiving irst-1nentioned conveyers and carryingit to the seed-depositing mechanism.

6. In al planter, the .combination of a. pair of hoppers, a seed-depositing mechanism arranged between the the seed from the hoppers and at the rear i thereof, a conveyer leading' rearwardly from v the front ot the hoppers to said seed-depositing mechanism, transverse conveyers conveying seed from the hoppers to the first-mentioned conveyer, and an eleyator arrange within one of the hoppers and receiving eX- cess seed from the first/-mentioned conveyer and returning; it to said hopper.

In testimony whereofI affix my signature.

BENJAMIN ZENDRON. [L s] 

